Phoenix police officers buy school shoes for tearful children unable to attend class
From tears to big smiles
Sergeant Malcolm Gonaseelan and Constable Branden Maharaj brought smiles to the faces of these Grade 2 pupils when they bought them each a pair of school shoes. The children were turned away from the first day of school because they did not have proper school shoes.
Image: SUPPLIED
WHEN two Phoenix SAPS officers encountered a mother and her children in tears because they couldn't attend school without proper shoes, they went above and beyond their duty.
Sergeant Malcolm Gonaseelan and Constable Branden Maharaj purchased new school shoes for the children and personally escorted them to their classrooms, turning a day of disappointment into one of joy.
Gareth Naidoo, spokesperson for KZN VIP, said that the police officers were conducting routine patrols when they noticed a distressed woman walking away from a local school with her two young children.
The policemen approached the woman and children who were in tears, he said.
“The woman told them that she had been unable to admit her children to the school because they did not have school shoes.
“She said she was forced her to take them home on their their first day back to school,” said Naidoo.
The woman’s plight pulled at the heartstrings of the two policemen and they immediately took action – they purchased two pairs of brand-new school shoes for the children.
“The officers then personally accompanied the family back to the school, where the children - both enrolled in Grade 2 – were allowed back to their classrooms